Sepulchral Whispers of a Love Unearthed
Archive of Our Own Link
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Summary:
In the desolate realm of Sepulchral Whispers of a Love Unearthed, the narrative unfolds with poignant intensity. You, the reader, traverse a shadowed landscape alongside Mary Goore, a defiant punk metalhead. As he delves into the piercing melodies of life, the dissonant chords of impending demise echo through their shared existence. Within the labyrinth of their love, a tempest of emotions unravels as Mary confronts the agonizing truth of your terminal fate. Each moment becomes a symphony of heart-wrenching crescendos, reverberating with the mournful notes of a love entwined with mortality. Against the backdrop of Mary's leather-clad rebellion and ink-stained passion, the narrative transcends conventional romanticism. In the final crescendo, Mary and the reader confront the inevitable, wrapped in the ethereal embrace of a love that defies even mortality. Sepulchral Whispers of a Love Unearthed becomes a melancholic hymn, a narrative etched in the marrow of hearts, leaving behind the haunting resonance of a love that outlives the grave.
Chapter 1: A Confession
You strolled along the sidewalk, taking in the chill of the evening. The day before, you had come across a less-than-impressive poster in a gas station restroom. Now, as you felt the nausea rise once again, you realized it was the poster of his lame band. Seriously? He returns without a heads-up. "Son of a bitch," you muttered in frustration. Exhausted, you resigned from getting angry, but you knew you had to confront him, perhaps for the final time. The messy way things were left bothered you, and despite the difficulty, you needed some form of closure to make sense of it all. Uncertain of how to approach the situation, you understood it was a conversation you couldn't avoid.
With a groan, you headed to your familiar hangout spot, the park across from the vintage record store. You anticipated he might be there, reminiscing about the times when happiness was the norm. Grabbing a quick coffee, you waited, and like clockwork, he emerged from the store. Discarding your empty cup, you made your way to the park, the dusk casting a melancholic vibe.
"Hey, Mary..." you murmured, weariness evident on your face.
Mary Goore your former lover, fling, and best friend – someone who had shared laughter over inappropriate jokes and brought tears with adorable moments. He glanced up, the color draining from his face at the sight of you. It had been a while, and he regretted how he had shattered your heart. Yet, that was in the past, and he put on a smug face to hide the pain he carried. He raised an eyebrow, "What's eating at you? You seem like someone just took a shit on your breakfast."
"On it or in it?" you asked, a skeptical expression on your face.
Mary smirked, "Well, that depends. Are you hangry or just annoyed?"
"I... what...." You said shaking your head. "Look, just came here to talk a bit, if you got some time." You sighed.
"Hmm... Okay." Mary inched a little closer, glancing around to ensure the coast was clear, a typical routine for the goofy dork. "So, spill it. What's on your mind...?"
"Well, I figured I owed you an apology for how everything went down between us... it was, um, messy. And I get you've got your hands full with tours and stuff... I mean, I knew what I was signing up for..." You trailed off with a sigh, your words tumbling out in a nervous ramble.
"Apologies? Seriously? You're still stuck on that?" Mary was taken aback, needing a moment to process your words. "Look, we were just a summer thing. I don't get why you're still hung up on it," he said, the cheerful tone replaced with a more serious one.
"Summer? It lasted a whole year!...I mean..." You hesitated. "Well, maybe I exaggerated our... whatever it was... a little much," you admitted, fidgeting with your shirt.
"Well, yeah, I thought we'd made that clear from the start... Why are you only now seeing that??" Mary's eyes were widening. "No, don't tell me you wanted more...?"
"Well...a year together....sorta implies more....???" You said looking at him like he was stupid.
"It doesn't if you both establish that nothing more was intended from the start." Mary's eyes narrowed. "Didn't I tell you that from…the very beginning?" His voice was getting steadily angrier.
"Uh, no. You didn't, actually. Why do you think I fucking thought it was more?" You said getting heated.
"Well, maybe you weren't paying attention." Mary's voice was now just straight-up mad. "I don't see how we had a whole ass year together and you still didn't get that I didn't want anything more than that." He retorted with a hint of anger. Somewhere deep inside, he knew it wasn't entirely accurate, but admitting it? That was a challenge for the stubborn guy with a big ego.
"Hey, my bad for getting it fucking wrong... birthdays, celebrations, presents, and hanging out together... what else was I supposed to think?" you remarked, making a fair argument.
His anger intensified. "All those meant was that I valued our connection and wanted to create happy memories, not that I envisioned some overly romanticized life together!" He was now yelling loudly.
"Those are just typical couple things!" you exclaimed.
Mary just paused, as if he suddenly had just had an epiphany... He seemed to calm down a bit as he pondered the truth behind the statement. "...I mean. We weren't official though..."
"Well only one of us was in on that..." You sighed defeated; your energy was fizzling out. It took all you had to even come here today, and this argument certainly wasn’t helping.
Mary seemed to be battling with his own thoughts now. "...We did pretty much everything that couples do though..."
"You don't say...." You scoffed walking to a bench.
"But we said it was just a momentary thing, right?" Mary spoke with a hopeful tone as he approached the bench and took a seat beside you. He realized he had made a mistake and needed to confront it. How could he have misunderstood things so badly?
"No...we never clearly defined it as a relationship or not...hence the confusion," you sighed.
After a moment of silence, Mary sighed and responded, "Yeah, okay, I... I guess... I mean, I should have been more explicit..." He muttered, "Look, I don't want to come off as heartless, but I don't think I love you..." It pained him to say those words. Deep down, he didn't mean any of it, but he felt like he wasn't the right match for you. Considering how badly he messed things up, he questioned whether he should keep hurting you with his foolish decisions. Just like when he left before, he felt the need to push you away to protect your heart... right?
"Yea, that much I see now." You rolled your eyes.
"I care about you, you know, like as a person," Mary casually remarked, giving a nonchalant shrug. "But that's as far as it goes," he added with a wince, holding back his emotions. He swallowed hard, determined to keep up the facade, to shield you from whatever might come.
"Wow, congrats on your big moment," you exclaimed, waving your hands. "Okay, fine... I fell really hard for you, God Damnit….And you know what? Whatever." You slapped your hands on your knees as you stood up. You seemed a bit wobbly and a bit pale.
Mary took notice of how pale you were and was puzzled by the way you stumbled. "Are you okay?" He asked you, slightly concerned.
"I'm fine. Just... doesn't matter." You said, walking toward the park exit.
Mary stood up and followed you, taking note of how you still seemed quite wobbly. "Hey, wait just a minute." He said catching up.
"What?" You said stopping.
"Do you... Need help getting home, or...?" Mary was still puzzled as to why you suddenly stumbled all of a sudden and was slightly concerned for your well-being. He just wanted to make sure you could get home okay.
"No, I'm fine. What do you care anyway?" You snapped a bit more from hurt than malice.
"Just a kind gesture." Mary tried his best to hide his hurt tone and failed. "I'm sorry if... Well, never mind." He sighed, before taking a step back. "Well, just get home safely then, please." He looked you in the eyes, clearly wanting some sort of acknowledgment of this last request.
"Fine...." You said, walking a bit more before suddenly vomiting in a trash can.
Mary seemed startled by the sudden puke-in-the-can-out-of-the-blue and was now concerned for real. "Damn, you're paler than a vampire's ass cheek, are you sure you're alright?" He looked at you worriedly, trying to suppress his emotions.
"Yea...I'm...I'm fine... " You said, trying to catch your breath.
"I'm not buying it." Mary walked over to you. "You puked, and now you're as pale as someone who's been dead for 6 days. I think you need, like, to sit down, or something."
"It's....fine...." You said sinking to the ground.
Mary crouched down to level with you, sitting on the ground himself. "No, it's not." He said seriously. "Look, if you need to, just lean on me. I'm here to make sure you're okay."
"I...I'm fine..." You said, trailing off. Taking some more breaths.
Mary watched you take a few more breaths, as his face was now also becoming pale from worry. "Okay, okay.. Don't try to keep up this facade anymore, you're clearly not..." His voice was now much more caring than bitter.
"I just....need to get home. Just...help me to the bus stop...." You said trying to make the nausea go away.
Mary got up and offered you a hand. "Yeah, you're in no state to walk by yourself. Let me help you, come on." You reluctantly grabbed his hand. Mary helped you up and leaned you on his shoulder, carefully supporting you in such a way that would put the least amount of strain on your body. "So, are you going to tell me why you're so sick all of a sudden or is that still 'fine'?"
"Just...get me to the bus stop...for the moment." You said trying to get the nausea to pass.
"Alright, I'll respect that." Mary said with a smile, before he picked back up on his pace. "Tell me though... How long have you been feeling nauseated for? And have you eaten anything recently...?" He sounded genuinely worried, and wanted to figure out what the best course of action would be once you reached the bus stop.
"A few weeks and not recently, no." You said short and to the point.
"Wait, weeks? You've been feeling sick for weeks?" He echoed, making sure he heard you right. "And you never saw a doctor? That's pretty serious." Concern etched his face.
"I just haven't had the time," you replied, avoiding too much detail.
Mary caught on that you weren't eager to spill more. "Got it," he said, trying to flash a reassuring smile as he supported you on your walk. "Let's sort everything out once we reach the bus stop, okay?"
"Fine," you retorted, a hint of coldness in your tone.
As he continued assisting you, Mary shifted from his initial assumptions of a romantic twist to genuine worry about your health. His words were softer now, a stark contrast to his previous demeanor.
We reached the bus stop, and you sat on the bench. "Bus isn't for another 45 minutes, god damnit. Just missed it, fuck I wish I had a car." You groaned.
"Damn, that does suck..." Mary sat down next to you, also looking out onto the road. "How come you don't have a car exactly? I thought you had that little red car?"
"I sold it..." was all you said.
"Huh... Any particular reason for that, or..?" The way you answered that question was very short, and left Mary intrigued.
"Pay for rent." You said still mad at him.
"... That sounds rough... You seem to be struggling pretty bad... Why don't you move somewhere with lower rent?" Mary looked at you out of genuine concern - If you really are struggling to pay rent and are now also missing your car, it doesn't sound like you'll be able to keep yourself afloat for much longer...
"It's as low as I could find." You said bluntly.
"So even with lower rent you're still struggling to make ends meet?" Mary sounded genuinely saddened by the answer. "Damn, it sounds like you're in a really dire situation right now..."
"Yup, not your concern though." You said coldly.
"Maybe it isn't my concern, but it still feels pretty damn sad to hear about." Mary looked in the distance for a bit, with a saddened expression on his face. "I know there's gotta be one way to fix this, so... Tell me, is money all you need right now to get your situation sorted?"
"I need a job...I...was let go." You sighed.
"You got let go from your job?" Mary asked, clearly shocked by this news. "But that's horrible... Damn, things really are terrible, aren't they??"
"Yup." You said distantly.
Mary put his head down, clearly feeling sorry, and feeling like it was also partially his damn fault - which it kinda was. After a moment, he looked back up at you. "... Maybe I can help you with that. But I need to know one thing first."
"What?" You said staring off in the distance.
"Are you gonna stop trying to get me to fall in love with you now?... Just making sure." Mary said jokingly, trying to lighten the mood.
"I....that....was never my goal." You stuttered, snapping out of the stare.
"... You sure about that?" Mary gave you a sly look, obviously not buying it. "You could at least be honest with me." He said jokingly again, although his tone clearly shifted from a joking one to a more curious one.
"I came to talk about us, yes....to figure it out. Get closure. But I instead learned you never saw us as a thing. Pretty fucking shitty...." You said coldly.
Mary stayed silent for a little bit, his tone now shifting back to the colder, and perhaps slightly bitter tone from before. "Look, I guess I apologize if I ever gave you the wrong idea... But why the hell would you want closure?? We never were a thing-"
"I get it now, don't I?" you grumbled.
"Well, yeah, but why would you need closure for an answer like that? You got your damn answer, now you just need to accept it. What more is there to say?"
"There isn't! I was leaving before...I..." You trailed off.
Mary's eyes raised in concern once again, seeing your sudden loss of words. "What? You were going to say something?"
“Threw up...before I threw up. And then you got all hero complex on me or something," you said with a grimace, feeling queasy again.
"Can you blame me?? You puked in the middle of the damn park and you're as pale as a ghost! How can you expect me to not worry after that??" His tone was growing heated up once more.
"Be....cause you...." You started to say looking pale and running to vomit in the bushes.
Mary's eyes widened in sudden shock. He immediately stood up once more and got up to follow you to the bushes. "Jesus, are you- Are you throwing up again?! What the hell is even going on??"
"I'm sorry, just.... just go okay....the bus will be here in like 30 minutes or whatever...." You said looking like hot dogshit.
"No, are you kidding? You can't be this sick and still try to go home on the bus... Who knows how much worse it could get on the way there..." Mary said sternly. "Now let me help you, damn it!"
"I...." you started to protest.
"No buts." Mary grabbed a hand and pulled you back from the bushes. "You're in no state to be left alone, so get that notion out of your head right now."
You scoffed.... "Left alone...." You mumbled.
"Yes, left alone!" He said in a frustrated tone before realizing how mean that sounded. "Sorry, look, I just don't want you to have a... a bad episode or whatever this is, all the way on the bus. You're so pale, there's no way they'd even let you get on the damn thing."
"Fine, then, I'll come with you?" you retorted with a hint of irritation.
Mary took a deep breath, pausing for a moment before speaking once more. "Well, it might not be the worst suggestion, though it pains me to admit it," he admitted with a slight sigh. "We could swing by my spot, and I could take care of you there. How does that sound?"
"Sure, whatever," you replied, closing yourself off.
"That's the spirit." Mary said, trying to lighten the tension. "So.. Let me just-" He went to lift you up so that he could help you the rest of the way to his house. "Alright, now just try not to barf along the way, okay?"
"I'll try...." You sighed.
"Good." Mary lifted you up into his arms leaning you against him, and started his walk back to his house, making note of how he had to walk slower with you on his shoulder. "So, I hope you don't take this personally, but I gotta ask.. Why haven't you at least tried applying for another job since they let you go?"
"Well....it's not super attractive to look like dogshit walking to her interview....." You said with a dark joking tone.
"Oh... So that kinda goes along with that 'struggling to pay rent' comment you made earlier, right?" Mary asked curiously.
"Something like that...." You sighed rolling your eyes.
"Damn... And you seriously have no way to get out of this situation?" Mary said in a more sympathetic tone now, feeling genuinely bad now that he actually heard about your current state.
"Honesty, why do you care?" You said coldly, but genuinely wanting to know.
"Well... I mean, it's mostly because I was the one who kinda indirectly caused most the stuff that is currently happening to you, so like... I gotta make sure you're safe now." Mary seemed to have realized just how bad he might have screwed up earlier and now wanted to at least do something to make it right. Although, it was still a little bit unclear about what kind of relationship he wanted to have with you, as his tone now went back to being much more caring.
"I see...." You said, pondering on what he said.
"Yeah, so I'm not just gonna leave you all by yourself like this..." He continued walking as he helped escort you back to his place. At this point, he was pretty much back to his old self, much more caring than before. "Now, I know you're still recovering from that puking session back there, but just so I at least get a sense... How long have you gone without eating anything, exactly?"
"A couple of days...two max." You said sheepishly.
"Wait, a couple of days??" Mary sounded much more concerned now when he heard that. "You haven't eaten anything in the last few days?! How have you even been functioning without food..?"
"I mean I try....I do drink water." You sighed heavily at the line of questions, mildly annoyed.
"That's not enough! You need nutrients and calories, otherwise you'll just... Keep feeling more and more sick and tired! Did you ever consider maybe trying to go to a food bank or something?"
"It's...not that...I just physically can't." you tried to explain.
Mary stayed quiet for a bit, trying to make some more sense of that comment. "What do you mean you 'physically can’t?"
“The nausea? Didn’t think about how that…would make it hard to want to eat?” You rolled your eyes.
"Wait, so you've basically been stuck with this non-stop sick feeling whenever you think about eating for the past few weeks?"
"Um... yeah, that's pretty much it," you admitted with a deep sigh.
"Damn... When was the last time you even got a proper night of sleep..?"
"I seriously can't recall... weeks?" You stated with a nonchalant shrug.
"Whoa... How are you not passed out by now? That's seriously messed up!"
"Just pure foolishness," you admitted.
"Well, that's not exactly comforting..." Mary mused, falling silent again as he pondered a solution. "I don't think we can just brush this off."
"I was kinda hoping to..." you sighed.
"You're not doing that. We're going to fix this damn thing, right now." Mary looked down at you, his face now expressing a determined expression as you just sighed once more. "Let me just get this straight. You went from working in an office to selling your car for rent money, to now not having a job so you can't even afford real food, haven't slept properly in weeks and have thrown up countless times just from nausea. And I'm supposed to just be okay with that?"
"Because....I'm not your problem anymore." You commented sadly.
"Look, I get it. We're not actually dating anymore, so in that sense, yes, you're not my problem. But you've got me worried now, so we're going to have to take care of this somehow. I refuse to let you keep on living like this and I refuse to let myself see you in such poor condition."
"Yea..." You said trailing off.
"I mean it, dammit! We're going to get you out of this mess, whether you like it or not. If this means you must move in with me for a while, then so be it, okay?"
"I can't do that...I....don't want to get hurt again." You sighed.
Mary's expression fell when she heard that. "Are you seriously going to let yourself go hungry just because you're scared of falling in love again? Is that really what you're saying?"
"Falling in love again? I've always loved you, damn it!" You blurted out, gasping at your own words as they escaped your lips.
"You..." Mary fell silent for a moment before finally responding. "...Are you serious?"
"Just... forget it," you said, shutting down.
"Hold on, don't just shrug it off," Mary insisted, pausing in his steps and adjusting his stance to meet your gaze. "Are you seriously trying to tell me that you still have feelings for me?"
"Yeah... I suppose," you replied, gazing into the distance.
"And you really believe I'll just hurt you again?" His feelings stung a bit, realizing you feared he might hurt you once more. Yet, deep down, he grappled with his own conflicting emotions, torn between the hurt he caused and the ache he felt himself.
"You left... What else am I supposed to think?" you stated frankly.
Mary fell silent once more, contemplating his words. "Can you... Can you at least let me explain myself?"
"Fine," you conceded.
"Just... Let me start by asking you something real quick. You're in the worst physical and mental state you've ever been in. You haven't eaten properly in days, you haven't slept properly in even longer, and you can barely function without throwing up randomly. Can you honestly even handle an argument right now, let alone some emotional conversation like this?"
"No... I can't handle it right now.... I am just so tired.....You said, looking pale again with another round of nausea.
"Right... So let's calm down for a bit, then. Just let me take care of you, at least for now, alright?" Mary was now visibly concerned for your wellbeing again.
"Are we almost there?" You said while you continued to help me.
"Yes, it's not too far off." Mary said as he kept walking with you in his arms. "You know, even though we've known each other for years, I find it really surprising how stubborn you can be."
"Yea....that'll happen.... when you're busy." You sighed.
"I'm sorry about that... I guess I just let my work become my main priority, and then when I finally realized what I was doing, it got too late..." Mary sighed. "I really wish I could have realized just how bad things were getting for you before it got this ridiculous." You silently nodded your head in understanding as you did your best to not to vomit again.
"Just a little bit more, and we'll be at my place. And then, I'll make sure you're taken care of." Mary stayed silent for a bit as he kept going. "And I'll be sure not to leave again this time, okay?"
You nodded your head once more. "Good. So just try to hang tight, alright?" Mary stopped talking as he finally reached his house. He went up the stairs and went inside, taking you inside and setting you on his couch. He took a seat next to the couch, and his expression went back to being much more serious. "Now, to what You said earlier... We'll have to have that conversation, just as soon as you're feeling a little better, okay."
"Yes....that's fine...." You said weakly.
"Good..." Mary stayed silent for a bit, still concerned. "So... You haven't exactly told me just how long have you actually gone without eating now...?"
"Three or so days." You said.
Mary was visibly appalled from what he heard. "Three goddamn days?! Why didn't you say anything?"
"To whom?" You spoke with a tone of annoyance.
"To me or anyone, for that matter! This is so dangerous, why haven't you tried to get some food, even if it meant going to the food bank. Or did that never even occur to you?"
"You...I have been trying to talk to you for weeks...." You said accusatory.
Mary was visibly irritated by your comment, his tone now going back to being irritated like earlier. "And so, you thought it was a good idea to just stop eating for days on end, just because I didn't have time to talk to you more often?? What the hell kind of logic is that..."
"I'm dying Mary...." You said bluntly.
